State Department of Health open to flexibility with mass vaccination sites

The Washington State Department of Health is leaving all options on the table when it comes distributing vaccines around the state, in particular with regards to mass vaccination sites.

The four state-run sites in Kennewick, Wenatchee, Ridgefield, and Spokane, have raised some concern, as some people in higher-populated counties struggle to get vaccine appointments.

State Health Secretary Dr. Umair Shah said in a briefing on Thursday that things appear to be “in a good place” at the moment and noted that the state has prioritized the four sites over other locally-run mass sites, such as Lumen Field.

However, he emphasized that he and his colleagues are “constantly pivoting, constantly evolving, constantly looking at what’s going to be able to meet or match the demand.”

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“We are constantly looking at whatever we need to do or have to do in order to pivot from where we’ve been,” he said. “And if that means that we need to re-look at strategies of how to balance supply and demand, or balance geographic considerations, or balance where we have a slow-down in one area and a quickened pace in another, everything is on the table. We’re continuing to assess.”

Shah said that they would consider dispersing vaccines in a different way if the need arose.

The mass sites are giving, in total, 20,000 to 30,000 doses per week, with each site giving about 600 to 1,000 doses per day, said Michele Roberts, acting assistant secretary for Prevention and Community Health.

“Let’s remember, we’re over 350,000 doses of vaccine a week [in our state allocation], so that’s really only 5% to 10% of our doses,” she said.

She acknowledged that mass sites may not be ideal for all critical workers who are now eligible, because of the hours these workers are on the job. In response, the state has made adjustments in the Eastern Washington sites to accommodate them, including moving around doses from mass vaccination sites to local health clinics.

“We’ve decreased the amount of first doses that are in those [mass] clinics this week,” she said. “And we’ve partnered with local health departments to think about other strategies, and shift some of those doses to community vaccinators or local health departments to help reach, especially, the agricultural community on the Eastside of the state.”

Mass vaccination sites are held to the same 95% rule as individual health providers, meaning if 95% of all doses are not used in a given week, they will receive fewer doses the next week.

Roberts said methods of vaccinating the public may evolve as different groups of people with different needs become eligible in the coming weeks and months.

A FEMA mass vaccination site set to open on March 31 in Yakima will have the capability of vaccinating between 1,000 and 1,200 people a day. These doses will come straight from the federal government and will not count as part of the state’s weekly allocation.

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